Help me
by MoriasDepths
Summary: In the summer just before Harry was born, Remus Lupin finds himself trying to help a fellow werewolf whom Lucius Malfoy is trying to recruit into the army of Lord Voldemort. Recently edited for typos.


Cassie Owens is my creation. Nobody else in this story is.

* * *

"What was it you wanted to speak to me about, Cassie?" Remus Lupin asked as he handed his guest a cup of tea. The young woman accepted it with a distracted air and took a large gulp of the steaming tea. Remus struggled not to wince. Reaching for his wand, he unobtrusively applied a cooling charm. Cassie stared into the depths of the cup for a long moment before finally replying. 

"I've been given a proposal, and I...I don't know what to do. I guess...I don't know what I was hoping." Brown eyes roved the kitchen unseeingly. A shaft of light from the late afternoon sun reflected off the silver threads in her black hair.

Remus watched the young werewolf carefully. "Does this have anything to do with your employer?"

Cassie's hand jerked and her tea sloshed over the tabletop. A ragged breath, almost a sob, escaped her. "Yeah, everything." Her eyes focused momentarily on the wood surface before her, then jerked up to meet Remus's gaze. "Malfoy wanted to speak with me just before I started work last night." She gave a bitter laugh. "More specifically, he was 'offering' me the chance to join the Dark Lord's army."

Remus felt asthough he had been slapped by a brick. "You're a Muggle. Why would he...?" His voice trailed off.

Cassie nervously took a sip out of her empty cup. When she spoke, tension laced her words. "That's what I asked 'Master' Malfoy. Seems my condition outweighs that. If I agree to join You-Know-Who, then they're willing to declare me an honorary witch. Oh, don't look at me like that; there's historical precedent. Muggle World War...something or other."

"What happens if you say 'no'?"

Cassie shook her head. "Then I lose my job. You know how long it took me to find that situation, bad as it is?"

Remus bit his lip. "I've been out of work before."

She snorted. "Yeah, well, you may be a werewolf, but at least you have magic. I don't even have that much." She buried her face in her arms. "Sometimes I just wish that werewolf had killed me. Or the ministry...oh, heck! I guess there wasn't much of anything else they could have done. It's not like the Muggle world is equipped to deal with my sort."

Remus reached across the table and laid his hand on her shoulder. There was a long silence. Finally, she lifted her head from her arms.

"Remus, that's not the worst of it."

He stared at her. "There's more? As it is, Malfoy's asking you to be prepared to kill friends...family."

She paused, and he got the impression that she was selecting her words very carefully. "You know that I was hired as security for Malfoy Manor, right? And that I usually work six or seven nights a week?"

Remus nodded.

"Did you ever stop to wonder just what I did the nights when there wasn't a full moon?"

He froze. In four years, it had somehow never occurred to him to ask.

Cassie sat back with a short laugh. "He's got some kind of potion designed for werewolves. And no, it isn't that new one that keeps the wolf mind from taking over."

Remus stared at her, his mouth dry. "What's it do?"

While her response was louder than his, it was tight with fear. "Basically, my body thinks that the sunset marks the moonrise. I don't know exactly how the potion works, but it means that instead of an army the Dark Lord can use only once a month, he can call us up any night he pleases."

"Get out of there, now." His voice refused to rise abovea whisper, as if it was afraid of being overheard.

"Remus, I told you, I can't! If I refuse Malfoy, he'll see to it I never get a job again. And before you offer, I don't accept alms. It doesn't take long for charity to become a burden, and you barely hang on as it is."

"I'm not offering charity, I'm helping a friend!" He paused suddenly. "I wonder."

She raised an eyebrow. "You wonder...?"

He shook his head in embarrassment. "Sorry. An idea struck me. You remember my friend James Potter?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "Your best friend from school?"

"That's him. Well, he's married, and his wife's about to have their first child. I'd be willing to bet galleons that they'd appreciate having someone around the house to help out...that is, if you're willing. And that would give you enough time to work something else out for later."

Hope was beginning to dawn on Cassie's face. "You really think they'd take in a stranger? Would they even want a werewolf around a newborn?"

Remus laughed. "They were quick enough to tell me that I was going to be a designated babysitter! I'll call them up and ask, but I don't think they'll have any problems with the idea. So, are you willing?"

"Merlin, Remus! You have to ask? Of course I am, if they are! Being told I couldn't have children because of the werewolf thing was one of the hardest blows I've ever taken. Being able to help out a family would make a great second-best."

Cassie glanced at her watch and swore. "Sorry, but I have to get going."

"Wait, I thought you were going to quit!"

"Oh, believe me, I am! But it's the full moon tonight, might as well get those last few Knuts from him. It's just this one last time, I can make it through. I have to give notice anyway." Cassie gave him a quick hug. "Thank you." She turned and vanished into the sunlit street.

* * *

It was on the cover of the _Daily Prophet _the next morning. There was scant detail on how the werewolf had managed to get through the wards surrounding the house. Instead, the majority of the article praised Lucius Malfoy's presence of mind as he fought off and killed the beast which had threatened his wife and newborn son. Only at the very last did they even mention Cassie's name. 

The _Prophet _dropped onto the table with a soft thud as Remus stared blankly into space. It didn't seem real, somehow; more as though he was still in a dream. Cassie's cup stood on the table where she had left it the night before. He slowly picked it up, cradling it in his hands.

It wasn't hard to figure out what must have happened. Cassie roamed the manor grounds at night. It would have been the work of a second for Malfoy to lower the wards on his house after he'd lured her near the appropriate window. And then, after Malfoy had prepared things to look as if he had acted in self-defence...Remus's mind shied away. She hadn't stood a chance.

His hoarse voice scared even him. "I'm sorry, Cassie. I should never have let you go back there." The paper flew apart as he hurled it onto the fire.


End file.
